NATHAN Ellington believes Sunday's derby clash at Villa will be vital to Albion's hopes of survival.

The Baggies, who have not won a league game at Villa Park since May 1979, take on their nearest neighbours knowing a victory could pull them away from the drop zone and leave David O'Leary's men looking over their shoulders.

Villa are reeling from Saturday's 5-0 defeat at Arsenal, with the under-fire O'Leary likely to come under intense scrutiny as he prepares for the first of two back-to-back derby games.

Ellington insists Albion must aim to bring back all three points from Villa Park and boost their own survival hopes.

"It will be a massive game for us," said the Duke. "Villa are just above us and if we can win we might be able to pull away.

"Who knows, maybe we can drag Villa into it too. The most important thing for us is to get points on the board and not worry about anything else. We're still confident."

Ellington welcomed the improved fitness and form of Zoltan Gera, who made an immediate impact after replacing Diomansy Kamara at half-time in the defeat by Liverpool.

The Hungarian was unfortunate not to pull a goal back after having Albion's best chances.

Ellington believes he can benefit from having a fully-fit Gera back in Albion's starting XI.

"Zoltan did great for us and he's not even 100 per cent fit," added Ellington. "If we can get him fully right so he can play a full 90 minutes he can make a big difference for us.

"I've seen a bit of him in training and you can see that extra bit of quality he has in his crossing, his finishing, his technique and vision.

"We can certainly do with someone like that - he's easily the best crosser of the ball and he puts it in early which all strikers like myself love."